Africa’s plastic waste problem is increasing faster than in any other part of the world, an analysis of data by the charity Tearfund says—with enough plastic being burned or dumped in sub-Saharan Africa every minute to cover a football field. A United Nations conference is being held next week to try to negotiate a treaty to fight plastic pollution, the Guardian reports, and activists are stressing the urgency, citing the increasing harm to the environment and Africans. One from Malawi who will participate in the conference said, “While these negotiations continue, the health of people in Malawi and across Africa is being impacted by plastic pollution every day.”
At the current pace, sub-Saharan Africa will be dealing with six times the amount of yearly plastic waste by 2060 that it produced in 2019, says the analysis, which was based on data from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Global plastic use is projected to nearly triple by then. Much of Africa’s consumption is taking place in sub-Saharan Africa, per the Guardian. Demand for products, including vehicles, is rising along with income and population—70% of the people there are younger than 30. The negotiators for the Nairobi conference also were addressed in an open letter from more than 80 bishops and church leaders, who warned that the region is looking at “mountains” of mismanaged plastic waste. (Read more plastic stories.)
